Tom Colicchio discusses Top Chef season four
Top Chef’s season finale is this Wednesday, with Richard, Stephanie, and Lisa competing for the title. Head judge Tom Colicchio recently sat down with Salon to talk about season four of Top Chef, the judging process, and other celebrity chefs. Here’s a rundown of some of the chef’s remarks:
- Colicchio doesn’t feel pressured to give a woman the title of Top Chef. Plenty of female contestants have been in the finale or come close to winning.
- He called season four’s contestants the “strongest group as a whole.”
- If you meet one of the Top Chef judges, resist the urge to second-guess their decisions. Colicchio likes to “lecture” people who criticize him. He explained that the judges’ deliberations last up to two hours, and viewers only see a few minutes of that discussion. The judges also make their choice to eliminate a contestant based on that week’s performances alone.
- Fans were shocked when Dale, a favorite to win, was sent home. Tom Colicchio wasn’t judging that week, and confessed that the elimination surprised him as well. However, he was told that Dale’s dish was clearly the worst dish of the week.
- He disagreed with a contestant’s claim that the key to winning Top Chef is “getting your point of view across.” Cooking good food is the way to win.
- When asked if he would hire any past Top Chef contestants, Colicchio singled out Tiffany and Harold from the first season, Sam (season two), and Hung (season three).
[via PopCandy]
Heidi Klum’s Search for Germany’s Next Top Model
Heidi Klum’s Search for Germany’s Next Top Model
With Reality TV’s surge in popularity here in the States, it’s no wonder other countries are also catching reality fever. And Heidi Klum is helping her motherland of Germany capitalize on the trend.
The Victoria’s Secret babe was spotted in Cologne earlier today for the Germany’s Next Top Model photocall, along with a few co-stars. She serves as the host, as well as the head judge and executive producer of the gig.
And she looked simply stunning in a black multi-textured belted minidress with a pair of shiny black gladiator sandals and a big smile.
Klum has been spending a lot of time in Germany as of late, working with a cosmetics for cancer charity earlier this week, as well as doing some promotional work for McDonald’s.
Kristi Cleans Up on Dancing
Kristi Yamaguchi entered this contest with her own built-in pun andmore credit to hershe didn’t let us down.
Positively icing the competition tonight (and every night, really), the Olympic gold medalist and partner Mark Ballas were named the winners of the sixth season of Dancing With the Stars.
“I guess ’K’ is a good initial to have,” Yamaguchi said before hoisting the coveted mirror-ball trophy. “This is just the icing on the cake. Honestly, from the bottom of my heart I want to thank all the fans out there and everyone involved…for making this a dream experience.”
In becoming the first woman to win the whole thing since Kelly Monaco in the series’ first season three years ago, Yamaguchi beat out NFL star Jason Taylor and first-time finalist Edyta Sliwinsksa in the final minutes of tonight’s two-hour finale.
“I never ever thought I would get to this point. I never thought I’d do this show,” the always-dashing Taylor said graciously. “Kristi is so deserving and everyone’s been so fantastic…I had the time of my life. I loved it.”
And really, the champion figure skater had been beating up on everyone all alongalthough Taylor recaptured the magic tonight with a 30-caliber quickstep that brought his two-night total to 81 out of a possible 90.
Too little too late, though, because Yamaguchi and Ballasthe highest-scoring couple in DWTS historyalso scored yet another 30, this one for a redo of their geek-chic jive, to give them a perfect 90 for the week.
“I’ve got to say, for me, you are the most consistent dancer, not only on this season, but on any season,” head judge Len Goodman said.
Yamaguchi’s well-deserved victory came at about the 1:58 mark of a two-hour montage extravaganza, which started off with a performance from Usher and moved right into the first elimination of the night.
It was the walking woundedCristián de la Fuente and Cheryl Burkewho were the first to be let go.
“When I heard you were going to stay in the competition [after rupturing a tendon in his bicep], I thought you were nuts,” host Tom Bergeron told the Chilean actor. “But what I’ve realized is, you’re pretty amazing.”
Aw, Bergeron’s getting downright sentimental in his sixth season.
“I would never have the feeling of going into the final after an injury if it wasn’t for Cheryl,” de la Fuente, who put off surgery to stay on the show, said. “She’s been the best partner I could have. She’s been a real friend, not only a dance partner but a support when I really needed her.”
“Of all my five seasons being on this show…I’ve had one of the best times with Cristián,” Burke, a two-time champion making her third trip to the finals, added. “I love you, and I’ll miss you and your family so much.”
Then the two performed one last tango andwe knew it was comingproducers managed to fill the ensuing hour and 40 minutes with highs and lows, drama and comedy, freak-outs and fawning, and flashes of what could’ve been.
Or, in this case, what already was.
This year’s other contestantsPenn Jillette, Monica Seles, Steve “I guess my favorite moment is right now and I don’t have a least-favorite moment” Guttenberg, Adam Carolla, Priscilla Presley, Marlee Matlin, Shannon Elizabeth, Mario and Marissa Jaret Winokurall trotted out to take a turn across the floor.
And yes, Carolla whipped out the unicycle again.
“This is why the terrorists hate uswe’ve got black and white, Hispanic and Asian, gay, straight and Guttenberg, all working together for one common goal,” the radio host said when asked for a recap of his DWTS experience. “And the mirror ball doesn’t care what color you are…”
He went on, but…Exactly.
Ultimately, though, the two remaining finalists had only the nicest things to say each other, although earlier in the evening Taylor admitted there was no room for his and de la Fuente’s friendship out on the dance floor.
“Kristi’s been great,” he said. “I grew up on two things: Wheaties and watching Kristi compete for our country.”
“Obviously I have a ton of respect for Jason,” Yamaguchi said of her cofinalist. “He really is a true gentleman.”
A nice sendoff for all involved.
DWTS Beat-by-Beat: Kristi Back on Top, Barely
Step in time with our Dancing With the Stars performance-show liveblog:
Only four stars remain and each will be performing two dances chosen at random, meaning they could wind up redoing their favorites or be forced to revisit their own personal ballroom hells. Either way, good times for us.
For some reason, the judges have reinstated the no-lift rule after allowing one per dance last week (which makes the choreography way more fun, but whatever), and expectations are high for one of the stronger semifinals in recent memory.
"Give it some welly," head judge Len Goodman reminds the group. And away we go with Jason Taylor's fox-trot…
8:08 p.m.: Jason, who floundered last week with a 52 but was not necessarily in the bottom two despite ending up with Mario in the red-hot spotlight (thank you, readers!), has regained his form, pulling off a fox-trot that has Len weeping into his tea…in the form of a 10.
"A lot more content and a lot more charisma" than last week, Carrie Ann Inaba adds.
8:12 p.m.: All told: 28.
8:15 p.m.: Season-two finalist Stacy Keibler, who compares past partner Tony Dovolani to her "older, meaner brother" is shown stopping by during the week to give Marissa Jaret Winokur a pep talk.
8:17 p.m.: Which appeared to work, because this quickstep is quite cute, if not incredibly quick.
8:19 p.m.: "You started off like a little locomotive and then took off like the Orient Express," Bruno Tonioli praises…
8:22 p.m.: …before deciding to give her only an 8 for missing a jeté. Marissa gets a 26.
8:25 p.m.: Cristián de la Fuente has to take on the Viennese waltz and samba again tonight, the very same combo that left him with a ruptured tendon in his left bicep two weeks ago. But first, the waltz…
8: 29 p.m.: We'll see if that obviously uninvolved arm bothers the judges…Nope.
8:30 p.m.: "Is anyone missing a weather balloon?" Tom Bergeron inquires, checking out Cheryl Burke's strategically cut and flamboyantly trimmed silver gown.
8:35 p.m.: A 27 keeps Cristián in the hunt.
8:37 p.m.: Here comes Kristi Yamaguchi, also a graduate of the Samba School of Hard Knocks. Not that it matters, though. She gets to tango and jive tonight, the first of which gave her trouble in the past, while the latter resulted in her only 30 to date. No pressure…
8:40 p.m.: Len likes her tango for the most part but thinks it was "a little bit hectic," a comment that prompts a "talk to the hand" gesture from Carrie Ann.
8:46 p.m.: Oh, Len, you old fuddy-duddy. 10, 9, 10.
8:53 p.m.: There's this season's Bachelor, Matt Grant, sitting in the audience. He has proposed to his final rose recipient, so check out The Bachelor finale following DWTS if you care to know whether Chelsea Wanstrath or Shayne Dahl Lamas will be the one returning the ring in about 6 to 10 months.
9:00 p.m.: First off, Jason and Edyta Sliwinska fire up the Latin round with a sizzling paso doble.
"You're a bit like the price of gasyou're going up," Len says. And it's 9s across the board, giving them a 27 and a total of 55 for the night.
9:05 p.m.: Marissa's sequins get stuck on Tony's shirt toward the end…and that was the most exciting part of their rumba as far as Carrie Ann is concerned.
But Len, insisting you can't expect paso-style sparks from the rumba, thinks she did "a very, very good job" and Bruno calls it "sexy in the city."
9:12 p.m.: Not surprisingly, it's an 8, 9, 9, giving Marissa another 26 and a 52 altogether.
8:13 p.m.: Let's see how the samba treats Cristián (hmmm, who's obviously trying to distract us with that wide-open shirt) this time around…
8:15 p.m.: "Hotter than a chili pepper" but occasionally "a little flat-footed," says Len. "Everybody was partying, me included," Bruno says. And Carrie Ann compares Cristián to ol' Twinkle Toes, aka season-three champ Emmitt Smith, who's in attendance tonight.
8:17 p.m.: Carrie Ann and Bruno each consider this injury-free samba to be 10-worthy, while Len holds back just a bit. Overall, Cristián's got himself a 56 and the lead.
8:24 p.m.: Kristi and Mark Ballas will try to recapture the glory of jives past…
8:26 p.m.: "The cherry on the icing on the cake of a sweet, sweet, delicious jive," Bruno says, while Carrie Ann and Len see a few flaws in the frosting.
8:28 p.m.: So that means 28, with the 10 coming from Bruno, and a return to first place with a 57.
A quick rundown: Kristi, 57; Cristián, 56; Jason, 55; Marissa, 52. Who makes it into next week and whose ouster can prevent the finals from becoming a third-wheel affair?